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Quotes And Leadership Lessons From A Quiet Place

A Reel Leadership Article

I missed A Quiet Place in the theaters. After watching it this past weekend, I’m kicking myself for waiting so long to see A Quiet Place.

The movie takes place sometime in the future where the world has been decimated by monsters who have hyper-sensitive hearing. This has forced the world to go into hiding and to remain virtually silent.

Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, in A Quiet Place

A Quiet Place tells the story of Lee Abbott (John Krasinski), his wife Evelyn Abbott (Emily Blunt), his daughter Regan (Millicent Simmonds), and son Marcus Abbott (Noah Jupe) as they try to survive in this harsh world.

Through the trials of the Abbott’s, you will jump, cry, and maybe even laugh. More than that, you will find Reel Leadership lessons in A Quiet Place.

Quotes And Leadership Lessons From A Quiet Place

1. Communication is more than verbal:

The world in A Quiet Place was scary. There were monsters that would attack sound. This meant if you were to speak, there was a good chance the monsters would attack you.

Because of this, people had to use sign language and lights to communicate. They would rarely open their mouths to speak. Their communication came from signals and lights.

You may believe you can communicate effectively through your words. And you may be able to speak elegantly. Yet you’re not communicating effectively.

True communication is more than words. Communication is a mix of words, non-verbal queues, and more.

Know you can communicate in more ways than words. Begin practicing different forms of communication. You’ll become a better leader because of your work on the non-verbal.

2. You can’t continue to live in guilt:

At the beginning of A Quiet Place, Regan gave her little brother Beau (Cade Woodward) a toy spaceship that Lee had taken away. When she gave the toy back to Beau, he grabbed the batteries and put them back into the toy. As they were headed back to their house, Beau activated the toy by a bridge and was killed by one of the monsters.

Regan held herself responsible for her brother’s death. She felt she was responsible for his death. She kept living with the weight of this on her shoulders.

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You’re going to make mistakes as a leader. But you can’t live with the heavy burden of guilt.

You have to move on from guilt. You can remember your mistakes but you can’t hold onto them. Learn how to let go and move forward.

Your guilt will hold you down. Your forward movement will free you.

3. You have to communicate what you feel:

Regan felt her father didn’t love her because of her brother’s death. This was part of the guilt she held onto.

Yet, if you’re a father, you know you still love your children regardless of what has happened in the past. Lee was no different. He still loved her. However, he didn’t communicate the message until the very end of the movie.

It’s easy to bottle up our feelings and not communicate how we feel about those we lead or, even, our own family. We believe because we’ve said it once that it holds true forever.

People aren’t like that. People require you to reinforce your feelings by expressing them through words and actions.

Don’t hold onto your feelings. Communicate what you feel and why. Your team and family will thank you for this.

4. Evelynn Abbott:

Listen to me, it’s important that you learn these things. He just wants you to be able to take care of yourself, to take care of me, when I’m old, and grey, and I have no teeth. Don’t worry.

Lee was getting ready to take Marcus out to learn about the world. Marcus freaks out and says he doesn’t want to go. His mother, Evelynn, knew there was wisdom in sending him out with Lee.

Out there, Marcus would learn truths about the world. He would learn how to take care of himself, his mother, and others.

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Learning new things may be scary. It was for Marcus. But learning how to take care of those you lead is something you need to do.

People are relying on you. You have to learn the skills necessary to protect them.

5. Take care of the little things:

Evelynn had carried a bag upstairs and the bag caught on a nail. The nail was pulled up and not fixed. Later in the movie, she stepped on the nail which alerted the monsters to her presence.

Had Evelynn taken care of the small nail when the issue arose, she wouldn’t have stepped on the nail. She also wouldn’t have made noise which called the monsters to her location.

Little issues, when taken care of, don’t lead to bigger issues. When you leave little issues on the table, you’re asking for a bigger problem to arise.

Take care of the little things, when they’re still little things.

6. Prepare the next generation:

Lee took son out to teach him about the world. He showed him the waterfall and that you could make noise while the waterfall covered your voice. Lee also taught his son how to fish and stay under the radar of the creature.

He helped prepare son to take over for him if anything were to happen.

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You’re not going to be a leader forever. You may forfeit the title or you may pass away. Leadership titles are passed like a baton. From one person to another.

Knowing this, you have a responsibility to leaders coming up behind you. You have the responsibility to teach and train them to be a good leader. Help them grow and reach their full potential.

7. Wisdom can come from those younger than you:

While on their training trip, Lee and Marcus talked. Their conversation went like this:

Marcus Abbott: Why didn’t you let her come? Do you blame her for what happened?
Lee Abbott: No.
Marcus Abbott: Because she blames herself.
Lee Abbott: It was no one’s fault.
Marcus Abbott: You still love her, right?
Lee Abbott: Of course I do.
Marcus Abbott: You should tell her.

While Marcus was Lee’s son, Marcus held a wealth of wisdom in his words. He shared with his father things he had picked up on that Lee had not.

Rest restores and rejuvenates you. Your body was created for rest. Give it what it needs.

10. Don’t let grief consume you:

Lee and Marcus came across a dead woman (Rhoda Pell) in the woods. They then ran into her husband (Leon Russom). The husband was grief-stricken. So much so that he let out a cry so he could be consumed by the monsters.

The monsters quickly descended on his location. They tore him limb from limb.

Your disability doesn’t disqualify you from leading. It makes your leadership different. And that’s a good thing.

Question: Have you seen A Quiet Place? If you have, what leadership lessons did you take away? If you haven’t seen the movie, what leadership lessons from A Quiet Place resonated with you? Let me know in the comment section below.

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